LAS VEGAS – The Raiders will have to wait another year to show off their fancy new home to their fans in Las Vegas.
The team sent a letter to season ticket holders Monday saying that after a discussion with fitness officials and local officials, the resolution was made not to allow enthusiasts to participate in the games this season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“While the existing scenario is not how none of us were making plans to celebrate the opening of Allegiant Stadium, when cases permit, we looked forward to share an unprecedented GameDay to revel in the Magnificent Stadium they helped build,” the team said in the letter.
Owner Mark Davis said last month that he would play any game at the new stadium unless enthusiasts were also allowed to do so.
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Both the New York Jets and Giants previously announced they would play without fans this season. Most other teams are hoping to be able to have at least limited crowds although that might not be possible at all venues.
The Raiders were thrilled to show off their new $2 billion home after spending the last 25 seasons at the run-down Oakland Coliseum. The team originally planned to play its first out-of-competition game on August 27 opposite Arizona and its first regular-season game on September 21 opposite New Orleans.
But the exhibition season has been cancelled and Monday night’s game in opposition to the Saints will now be played with any fan.
The Raiders broke a new floor in the 65,000-seat dome-shaped stadium across the Las Vegas Strip in November 2017, months after the NFL approved the move of the team from Oakland to Nevada.
Authorities have declared the “substantial completion” of Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas after just 1,000 days of construction of the Raiders’ new home.
The first planned occasion at the stadium, a sold-out concert through Garth Brooks, has already been postponed from August 22 to February 27 in an effort to prevent the spread of the virus.